Known in some circles as "a Linux distribution managed by committee", and in others as the newest modern bureaucracy.
Anyway, it's a well-organized, stable Linux distro. It's only fault (to outsiders who aren't exposed to the internal decision-making process) seems to be that if you need to run current versions of anything interesting, you need to install most of the "unstable" branch.
It can be extremely logical at times, and dumbfoundedly messy at others. I guess it grows on you.